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Office of Vice President Biden Intelligence Briefing


*From:* Bulletin Intelligence <Biden@BulletinIntelligence.com>
*Sent:* Tuesday, December 11, 2018 8:01 AM
*To:* Biden@BulletinIntelligence.com
*Subject:* Office of Vice President Biden Intelligence Briefing for
Tuesday, December 11, 2018


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[image: Image removed by sender. Office of Vice President Biden
Intelligence Briefing]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=001-b84&t=c>

*To: Vice President Joe Biden*

*Tuesday, December 11, 2018 8:00 AM EST*
Today's Table of Contents

*Biden in the News* <#SECTION_1>

• Biden Urges Brown Students To Get Engaged In Politics. <#S1>

• Warren, Biden, Booker, Harris Expected To Decide Soon About Race. <#S2>

• Top Possible Democratic Contenders For 2020 On Twitter Are Sanders,
Booker, And Biden. <#S3>

*Leading the News* <#SECTION_2>

• Trump Reportedly Sees Impeachment As “Real Possibility,” Says Democrats
Mischaracterizing Payments By Cohen. <#S4>

*Foreign Policy* <#SECTION_3>

• US Sanctions Three Top North Korean Officials. <#S5>

• Kushner: White House Focused On Mideast Peace, Not Khashoggi Killing.
<#S6>

• NYTimes Analysis: Targets Of US Sanctions Hire Lobbyists With Ties To
Trump. <#S7>

• State Department To Use Global “Anti-Corruption Day” To Criticize Iran.
<#S8>

• May Delays Parliament Vote On Brexit. <#S9>

• France’s Macron Offers Concessions In Bid To Quell Violent Protests.
<#S10>

• US Official: Russian Gas Pipeline To Boost Moscow’s Grip On Ukraine,
Europe. <#S11>

*Domestic Policy* <#SECTION_4>

• Meadows, Bossie Lead Media Speculation About Kelly Successor. <#S12>

• Pelosi, Schumer To Offer Trump $1.3B For Border Fence As Shutdown Looms.
<#S13>

• White House Cancels Trump’s Baltimore Visit To Discuss Opportunity Zones.
<#S14>

• US Stocks Continue Decline Amid US-China Tensions, Brexit Fears. <#S15>

• SCOTUS Declines To Hear Planned Parenthood Defunding Appeals. <#S16>

• Kushner: Bipartisan First Step Act Close to Passage. <#S17>

• Pelosi, “Rebels” Working Toward Leadership Term Limits Agreement. <#S18>

*Cancer Research* <#SECTION_5>

• NCI Announces Five Percent Cut To Operating Budget. <#S19>

• Pregnancy History Impacts Breast Cancer Risk, Study Indicates. <#S20>

*Editorials/Op-Eds* <#SECTION_6>

• New York Times. <#S21>

• Washington Post. <#S22>
Biden in the News
Biden Urges Brown Students To Get Engaged In Politics.

The Providence (RI) Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=002-5ae&t=c>
(12/10, Scott) reports Vice President Biden “talked democracy, family and
the presidency during a lecture to more than 2,000 students at Brown
University’s Pizzitola Sports Center on Monday night.” Biden said, “We’re
in a battle for the soul of America.” The Journal adds that Biden “argued
that a perceived breakdown in the nation’s political system was caused by
two ‘alien strains’ of thinking that he believes to be the greatest threats
to democracy today.” He called them, “Naked nationalism,” and “phony
populism.” Biden said that with the Bill of Rights, it was decided that
some things “cannot by majority will be trampled on — that’s what
distinguishes us from the rest of the world.” Biden also said, “We have to
rebuild the muscle memory that has allowed us to arrive at consensus in our
policies.” He added, “When there is none, and there is gridlock, what
happens? Power is able to be abused by the executive.” Biden also told the
students, “Your generation is the most tolerant, generous, progressive
generation in this country’s history,” adding, “You have the power to
change the direction of this country all by yourself if you just get
engaged.”

The Brown (RI) Daily Herald
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=003-3d5&t=c>
(12/11, Reed) reports Biden also said, “We’re the only nation in the world
that believes there’s nothing we can’t do,” and while he “is still
deliberating with his family over a presidential run in 2020, he is certain
that ‘we can’t take six more years of this policy without doing serious
damage to America.’”
Warren, Biden, Booker, Harris Expected To Decide Soon About Race.

CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=004-ed0&t=c>
(12/10, Dezenski) reports Sen. Elizabeth Warren “is full steam ahead on
building the infrastructure for a run – even reportedly shopping for office
space for a campaign HQ in Boston.” She is also “issuing a fundraising call
to arms in support of Democrat Dan McCready as allegations of election
fraud swirl around his NC-9 race.” CNN adds that “Joe Biden’s got the same
sort of infrastructure at the ready – should he decide he wants to run,”
but, CNN adds, “Biden played it coy during an interview in Vermont this
weekend, saying he wants to spend time with his family and be engaged for
the rest of his life ... whatever that means.” Meanwhile, “Biden’s team has
been reaching out to old allies in New Hampshire.” CNN also reports that
Sen. Cory Booker “said he’ll decide on a run over the holidays,” and Sen.
Kamala Harris “has the same timeline,” saying, “Over the holiday, I will
make that decision with my family.”

The Los Angeles Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=005-bd2&t=c>
(12/10, Garza) reports, “Earlier this week, Joe Biden told an audience at
the University of Montana that he was ‘the most qualified person in the
country to be president.’” The Times adds, “one doesn’t generally say such
things unless they’re running,” and comments, “Biden’s never played coy
about his desire to hold the office.” The Times also writes, “In October,
Biden received some buzz as early polling showed him leading the Democratic
field in 2020.”

The Keene (NH) Sentinel
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=006-abe&t=c>
(12/10, Staff) reports, “Booker, 49, spent the weekend in coffee shops and
auditoriums and at house parties in Nashua, Manchester and Keene.” He also
“told WMUR Saturday that he hasn’t officially decided if he’ll run for
president, and said he’ll make that determination ‘over the holidays.’”

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=007-1c6&t=c>
(12/10, Korecki) reports Warren “has the core of her 2020 team in place if
she runs for president,” and has “$12.5 million ready to go, left over from
her recent Senate run — and a massive email list she’s amassed over years.”
In addition, “her aides have been quietly shopping for presidential
campaign headquarters space in the Boston area in recent weeks.” Politico
also reports, Warren could “be rolling out arguably the most advanced and
sweeping infrastructure in the Democratic field...with only Sens. Bernie
Sanders (I-Vt.) and Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) coming close.”

Joan Vennochi writes in her column for the Boston Globe
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=008-9be&t=c>
(12/10), “If Elizabeth Warren really wants to run for president — she
should go for it, and not let the fickle press undercut her resolve.”
Vennochi adds, “Her big problem is the controversy over her heritage,” and,
says Vennochi, “Her recent release of DNA results, showing distant Native
American ancestry hurt rather than helped her cause.”

Ronald Brownstein, in an analysis for CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=009-ea9&t=c>
(12/11, Brownstein) writes that Democrats are arguing about “how much
emphasis the party should place on trying to recapture white working-class
voters as opposed to maximizing turnout among its new base of minority,
millennial and college-educated white voters, especially women and those in
urban areas.” Brownstein adds that “many” of those considering running in
2020 “appear better suited to energizing its new base,” while “former Vice
President Joe Biden, Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown and centrists such as former
Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe and outgoing Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper
might be better positioned to reassure working-class white voters than to
mobilize the base.”
Top Possible Democratic Contenders For 2020 On Twitter Are Sanders, Booker,
And Biden.

The Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=00a-b12&t=c>
(12/10, Mastrangelo) reports that in the past three presidential elections,
the candidate with the larger following on Twitter has won. It adds that at
present, President Trump has 56.2 million followers and President Obama has
104 million, while “the top five possible Democratic contenders” with the
largest number of followers on Twitter are: Bernie Sanders, 7.9 million;
Cory Booker, 4.8 million; Joe Biden, 3.1 million; Kamala Harris, 1.9
million; and Amy Klobuchar, 523,000.
Leading the News
Trump Reportedly Sees Impeachment As “Real Possibility,” Says Democrats
Mischaracterizing Payments By Cohen.

Jim Acosta writes on the CNN
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=00b-a87&t=c>
(12/10) website that “a source close to the President told CNN Monday” that
the President believes impeachment is a “real possibility,” but he “isn’t
certain it will happen.” Acosta cites a “separate source close to the White
House” who said White House aides told CNN that aides believe “the only
issue that may stick” in the impeachment process “is the campaign finance
violations tied to former Trump attorney Michael Cohen’s payouts to Trump’s
alleged mistresses.” Acosta’s report, which he discussed on CNN’s Anderson
Cooper 360[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=00c-9b9&t=c>
(12/10), came on the same day the President issued a pair of tweets in
which he accused Democrats of “wrongly” characterizing the payments made by
Cohen as a campaign contribution when the payments were, in fact, “a simple
private transaction.” Trump argued Democrats are focused on the payments
because there is no evidence of collusion between his campaign and Russia.
Trump’s tweets garnered relatively heavy media attention, but comments from
Democratic lawmakers discussing whether he committed impeachable offenses
also receive a great deal of coverage.

Trump tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=00d-79d&t=c>,
“‘Democrats can’t find a Smocking Gun tying the Trump campaign to Russia
after James Comey’s testimony. No Smocking Gun...No Collusion.’ @FoxNews
That’s because there was NO COLLUSION. So now the Dems go to a simple
private transaction, wrongly call it a campaign contribution,” ...
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=00e-33b&t=c>
“which it was not (but even if it was, it is only a CIVIL CASE, like
Obama’s – but it was done correctly by a lawyer and there would not even be
a fine. Lawyer’s liability if he made a mistake, not me). Cohen just trying
to get his sentence reduced. WITCH HUNT!” The tweets came as Trump “has
expressed concern that he could be impeached when Democrats take over the
House, a source close to the President told CNN Monday,”

The Daily Caller
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=00f-b17&t=c>
(12/10, Enjeti) says Trump “expressed his frustration” with “Cohen and
recent court filings alleging that he attempted to circumvent campaign
finance law during the 2016 presidential election.” The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=010-329&t=c>
(12/10, Samuels) says the tweets “appeared to be prompted by comments by a
Fox News host,” who said Democrats “can’t find a smoking gun tying the
Trump campaign to Russia,” while a USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=011-03c&t=c>
(12/10, Jackson) analysis says Trump “has been consistently inconsistent
about Michael Cohen and hush money to alleged former mistresses.” Trump
“has gone from denying knowledge of any payments to women who claim to have
been mistresses to apparent acknowledgment of those payments – and claims
they wouldn’t be illegal in any case.”

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=012-3ba&t=c>
(12/10, Heavey, Chiacu) says the President “misspelled the word ‘smoking’
twice, drawing criticism and ridicule on Twitter.” The New York Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=013-a10&t=c>
(12/10, Hicks) reports the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, “needled President
Trump” for typing “smocking” instead of “Smoking” Merriam-Webster staffers
tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=014-ad7&t=c>,
“Today in Spellcheck Can’t Save You: ‘Smocking’ is a type of embroidery
made of many small folds sewn into place.”

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=015-0ef&t=c>
(12/10, Wagner) reports Trump’s tweets drew criticism from “several
lawyers, both for their substance and for his public airing of a defense
that could complicate matters if charges are ever brought against him.”
Attorney George Conway, the husband of Kellyanne Conway, “seized on Trump’s
assertion that Democrats were behind the scrutiny of the payments.” George
Conway tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=016-6dc&t=c>,
“No, the criminal campaign-finance violations were found by professional
line prosecutors in a Republican-controlled United States Department of
Justice. It looks like a pretty good case. Kudos to them.”

Former NSA attorney Susan Hennessey said on CNN’s Situation Room[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=017-2e8&t=c>
(12/10), “One of the most significant things is the SDNY filing in which
federal prosecutors asserted in their own voice that the President had
directed the commission of multiple federal crimes. ... I do think we can
say without exaggeration if Donald Trump was not currently President of the
United States, he would be under indictment or he would be imminently under
indictment.” Sabrina Siddiqui of The Guardian said on CNN’s Situation
Room[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=018-474&t=c>
(12/10), “The President is clearly rattled and that was evidenced in the
tweetstorm where he tried to downplay the contents of these filings,
stating there was no smoking gun when there were, in fact, substantial
revelations that he should be concerned about.”

Eugene Robinson writes in the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=019-9ee&t=c>
(12/10) the Trump’s claim that the payments to Stormy Daniels and Karen
McDougal were “a simple private transaction” makes him wonder “what he’s
been ‘smocking.’” Robinson argues that “according to Cohen – and common
sense – the purpose” of the payments was to keep the women’s “accounts of
their alleged relationships with Trump from being made public before the
election. It means those payments have to be considered illegal, unreported
campaign contributions.” Robinson adds that prosecutors “have directly
implicated Trump in a federal crime. It may be a bit premature to start
chanting ‘lock him up!’ – but stay tuned.”

*Democrats Cautious About Using The Word “Impeachment.” *Jonathan
Karl said on ABC World News Tonight[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=01a-c0c&t=c>
(12/10, story 4, 1:45, Muir) that Trump “claimed he’s been fully
exonerated,” but he is “facing mounting legal threats.” Karl added that
“Democrats preparing to take over the House [are] openly talking about the
possibility of impeachment.” Similarly, Paula Reid said on the CBS Evening
News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=01b-43d&t=c>
(12/10, story 3, 2:00, Glor) that the “latest revelations led to renewed
talks by Democrats of impeachment or indictment.” However, the AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=01c-da5&t=c>
(12/10, Jalonick) reports that while some House Democrats “are willing to
say that President Donald Trump may have committed impeachable offenses,”
that “doesn’t mean they will try to impeach him – at least not yet.”
Democrats “have been extremely cautious about the ‘I’ word,” knowing “it
could backfire politically.” On ABC’s Good Morning America[image: Image
removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=01d-7eb&t=c>
(12/10), Mary Bruce said Democratic “leaders have made clear they want to
wait and see what Mueller finds, see his report before they make any
moves.”

Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) was asked on CNN’s Situation Room[image:
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<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=01e-f43&t=c>
(12/10) if he believes the President has committed impeachable offenses.
Coons said, “I can’t reach that conclusion yet, but certainly the most
recent filings by Robert Mueller and other recent court filings strongly
suggest that there were campaign finance violations committed by Michael
Cohen at President Trump’s direction and that those are violations that may
well lead to criminal charges.” Later[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=01f-c05&t=c>
(12/10) in the interview, Coons was asked if he agrees with Rep. Adam
Schiff (D-CA) that the President could be indicted and face jail time after
he leaves office. Coons said, “Yes. ... The evidence that’s been presented
in the Michael Cohen case that the President directed him to engage in
payments that were intended to influence the outcome of the election really
sharpens the President’s legal risk here, and I agree with Congressman
Schiff that that might well form the basis for an indictment after the
President leaves office.”

*GOP Senators Dismiss Any “Peril Facing The President.” *The New
York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=020-fd4&t=c>
(12/10, Savage) says Trump “is effectively an unindicted co-conspirator in
Mr. Cohen’s campaign-finance crimes, but his legal exposure and political
liability turn on several factors, including whether a president can be
charged with a crime – not while he is in office, the Justice Department
has concluded – and the political mood in Congress. Republican Senate
leaders were nearly unanimous on Monday in dismissing any new peril facing
the president.” Sahil Kapur of Bloomberg News said on Fox News’ Special
Report[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=021-c08&t=c>
(12/10), “I was just on Capitol Hill and spoke to a number of senators.
Republican senators are not breaking with the President at this point. They
are in a wait-and-see mode. ... Right now we are at a backdrop where the
President’s approval rating is still 85 to 90 percent with Republican
voters. His base is with him and you see a reluctance among Republicans on
Capitol Hill to confront him.”

Meanwhile, Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) said on CNN’s Situation
Room[image:
Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=022-abd&t=c>
(12/10), “Do I think that an FEC violation rises to the level of
impeachment? Probably not. ... When you look at issues of impeachment and
what’s taken for impeachment, I think it’s got to be something massive,
and, again, it’s a political decision made by the House of Representatives
at that point. But I’m not sure if saying, you know, an FEC violation, for
instance, rises to that level. It’s a decision that the Democrats are going
to have to make and one they have to live with politically and also, you
know, does this reach that level of what the Constitution calls for?”

*Chait: Mueller’s Probe Could Be Far From Over. *Jonathan Chait
writes for New York Magazine
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=023-263&t=c>
(12/10) that while “reporters and commentators have begun saying Mueller’s
probe is reaching its final stages,” that “conclusion is almost certainly a
matter of speculation, which has gained wide acceptance through repetition.
Nobody actually knows if the probe is almost over. The gap between what
Mueller has produced in public and what may be yet to come remains vast.”
Chait describes a “vast chasm between what has been reported in the news
media – hell, what has even transpired in plain sight – and what Mueller
has been able to demonstrate in a court of law.” The President’s lawyers
“were promising the inquiry would be over by Thanksgiving – of last year,”
but “do we have any real reason to believe it won’t still be going by this
time next year?”

*Comey: Voters Should Hold Trump Accountable In 2020. *USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=024-541&t=c>
(12/10, Cummings) reports former FBI Director James Comey said Sunday that
he hopes Trump is held accountable by voters in 2020 rather than impeached.
In an interview with MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace in New York, Comey said,
“All of us should use every breath we have to make sure the lies stop on
January 20, 2021. ... We need a moment of inflection where we all get off
the couch and say, ‘That is not who we are,’ and, in a landslide, rid
ourselves of this attack on our values.” Comey argued that if Trump is
impeached before the election, it would “let the country off the hook” and
leave a third of the nation with the belief Trump has been ousted in a
coup. On NBC’s Today[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=025-ae3&t=c>
(12/10), Hoda Kotb cast Comey’s comments as an escalation of his “war of
words with the President.”

Trump argued in a tweet
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=026-0ea&t=c>
Monday evening, “James Comey’s behind closed doors testimony reveals that
‘there was not evidence of Campaign Collusion’ with Russia when he left the
FBI. In other words, the Witch Hunt is illegal and should never have been
started!” In another tweet
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=027-401&t=c>
Monday evening, Trump highlighted Lou Dobbs’ comments[image: Image removed
by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=028-508&t=c>
at the end of his show Monday. Trump wrote, “‘Former FBI Director James
Comey under fire for his testimony acknowledging he knew that the Democrats
paid for that phony Trump Dossier.’ @LouDobbs Details on Tuesday night.”

*Manafort Scheduling Conference To Be Held Today. *The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=029-26e&t=c>
(12/10) reports that U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson “has set a
court date for this week for former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort
after prosecutors with the special counsel’s office detailed lies they say
he told them. The scheduling conference will take place Tuesday afternoon.”
According to the AP, “It had earlier been set for Wednesday morning.”
Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=02a-0e3&t=c>
(12/10, Gerstein) says Jackson said Manafort “need not appear at the
session Wednesday if he files a written waiver with the court.”

*Accused Russian Agent Reaches Plea Deal With Prosecutors. *The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=02b-1bb&t=c>
(12/10, Balsamo) reports Maria Butina, who has been “accused of being a
secret agent for the Russian government, has likely taken a plea deal,
prosecutors indicated Monday in a court filing that said her case has been
‘resolved.” Prosecutors “have alleged Butina, 30, gathered intelligence on
American officials and political organizations and worked to develop
relationships with American politicians through her contacts with the
National Rifle Association.” In addition, prosecutors “charged that her
work was directed by a former Russian lawmaker who was sanctioned by the
U.S. Treasury Department for his alleged ties to Russian President Vladimir
Putin.” The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=02c-f69&t=c>
(12/10, Hsu) says “attorneys for Butina and federal prosecutors jointly
requested in court documents Monday that U.S. District Judge Tanya S.
Chutkan set a time for Butina to withdraw her previous plea of not guilty.”
The “filing did not indicate to what charge she will plead.”

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=02d-78c&t=c>
(12/10, Rosenberg) reports that “a deal would most likely require Ms.
Butina to cooperate with investigators.” Investigators “probably want to
hear what Ms. Butina could tell them about covert Russian influence efforts
in the United States.” The investigation “is separate from the work being
done by the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III,” and Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=02e-cc5&t=c>
(12/10, Lynch) says whether or not Butina “could help shed any light on
contacts between Trump’s campaign and Russia is not known.” ABC World News
Tonight[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=02f-d09&t=c>
(12/10, story 6, 0:25, Muir) reported briefly on Butina’s apparent plea
deal.

*Author: Trump Can’t Tell The Difference Between “A Favor And A
Crooked Scheme.” *Seth Hettena, author of “Trump/Russia: A Definitive
History,” writes in an op-ed for the New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=030-27b&t=c>
(12/10) that “one of the keys to success in Mr. Trump’s life has been
collecting deposits in a bank of favors. ‘Do me a favor’ is one of his
favorite lines, with the promise of good things to follow.” But Trump “is
unable or unwilling to spot the difference between a favor and a crooked
scheme,” which “goes a long way toward explaining why he has surrounded
himself with people in trouble with the law and why his presidency is in
the grip of intensifying federal investigations.”

*Graham Says Special Counsel Should Have Been Appointed To
Investigate “All Things Clinton.” *The Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=031-cc8&t=c>
(12/10, Correll) reports Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who is expected to
become Senate Judiciary Chairman, argued on Fox News’ Hannity[image: Image
removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=032-f65&t=c>
(12/10), “We should have had a special counsel appointed a long time ago to
look at all things Clinton.” Graham made the statement “after comments from
Hannity connecting Clinton with the Uranium One deal that occurred when she
was secretary of State and her presidential campaign with the unverified
‘Trump dossier,’ which contains salacious, unverified information about
President Trump and his relationship with Russia.”

*Dershowitz: Democrats Who Didn’t Go After Clinton Shouldn’t Go
After Trump. *The Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=033-360&t=c>
(12/10, Correll) reports Alan Dershowitz argued on Fox News’ Tucker Carlson
Tonight[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=034-a88&t=c>
(12/10) “that Democrats who didn’t want to take down former President Bill
Clinton shouldn’t now be gunning for the impeachment of President Trump.”
Dershowitz said, “We need a single standard: If you would not go after Bill
Clinton, don’t go after Donald Trump.” Dershowitz argued that Democrats
would not have problem if Clinton had done the same thing.
Foreign Policy
US Sanctions Three Top North Korean Officials.

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=035-a1a&t=c>
(12/10, Ahmann, Heavey) reports that the Treasury Department has “imposed
sanctions on three North Korea officials, including a top aide to North
Korean leader Kim Jong Un, citing ‘ongoing and serious human rights abuses
and censorship.’” Reuters says Ryong Hae Choe, “an aide close to Kim who,
according to the U.S. Treasury, heads the Workers’ Party of Korea
Organization and Guidance Department, was sanctioned, as were State
Security Minister Kyong Thaek Jong and the director of North Korea’s
Propaganda and Agitation Department, Kwang Ho Pak.”

*South Korea Awaits Kim’s First Visit. *According to the New York
Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=036-e85&t=c>
(12/10, Choe), “South Korea is holding its breath for what its president,
Moon Jae-in, has repeatedly said could happen by the end of December: Kim
Jong-un’s visit to Seoul, which would be a first for a North Korean
leader.” The Times says that although Kim “agreed to visit the South Korean
capital ‘at an early date’” when he met with Moon in September, he “has yet
to accept Mr. Moon’s invitation to visit by the end of December.” The Times
goes on to say that if Kim “doesn’t show up in Seoul this month, it will be
a huge letdown for Mr. Moon, who has repeatedly told his people that Mr.
Kim promised to try. The South Korean government has been preparing for the
visit for weeks.”
Kushner: White House Focused On Mideast Peace, Not Khashoggi Killing.

Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=037-39a&t=c>
(12/10, Forgey) reports Jared Kushner said Monday that the US intelligence
community was still “making their assessments” regarding the murder of
Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, but that the Administration was “focused
now on the broader region” in the Middle East. Kushner told Fox News’ Sean
Hannity, “I think our intelligence agencies are making their assessments,
and we’re hoping to make sure that there’s justice brought where that
should be. We’re focused now on the broader region, which is hopefully
figuring out how to bring a deal together between the Israelis and the
Palestinians.” Kushner also told Hannity that the Administration was
hopeful that its Mideast peace plan would be released “in the next couple
of months,” but cautioned that “not every side is going to love” the
proposed agreement.

*Top US Lobbying Firms Worked With Saudi Official Tied To Khashoggi
Murder. *The Daily Caller
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=038-4a8&t=c>
(12/10) reports that BGR Group and Squire Patton Boggs, “two prestigious
and very influential Washington, D.C. lobbying firms collaborated directly
with the high-ranking Saudi royal aide who allegedly orchestrated the
brutal murder” of Khashoggi “as part of an expansive Saudi campaign to
influence Congress.” According to the Daily Caller, Saud al-Qahtani, who
“directly secured the services of BGR Group and Squire Patton Boggs for
services on behalf of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 2016,” was “sent 11
messages – and maybe more” by Crown Prince Muhammed bin Salman “in the
hours immediately surrounding Khashoggi’s grisly murder, according to a
classified CIA report obtained by The Wall Street Journal.”
NYTimes Analysis: Targets Of US Sanctions Hire Lobbyists With Ties To Trump.

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=039-2c5&t=c>
(12/10, Vogel) details what it calls “a lucrative and expanding niche
within Washington’s influence industry. As President Trump’s administration
has increasingly turned to sanctions, travel restrictions and tariffs to
punish foreign governments as well as people and companies from abroad,
targets of those measures have turned for assistance to Washington’s K
Street corridor of law, lobbying and public relations firms.” According to
the Times, “some of the biggest payments have been going to lobbyists,
lawyers and consultants with connections to Mr. Trump or his
administration.”
State Department To Use Global “Anti-Corruption Day” To Criticize Iran.

The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=03a-f60&t=c>
(12/10, Boylan) reports the State Department is “using Sunday’s
‘International Anti-Corruption Day’ as an opening to criticize what it says
is rampant corruption in Iran and name and shame numerous government
officials, including the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei.” On Twitter,
the State Department wrote
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=03b-4e1&t=c>,
“Today is #AntiCorruptionDay. Sadly, for the Iranian people, their
government is full of corrupt hypocrites. Take Ayatollah Khamenei, who has
a tax-free hedge fund worth billions.” In another tweet
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=03c-fc4&t=c>,
the State Department “accused Iran’s leader of seizing property from the
country’s religious minorities and using the proceeds to fund Iran’s
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.”
May Delays Parliament Vote On Brexit.

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=03d-681&t=c>
(12/10, Faulconbridge, Piper) reports British Prime Minister Theresa May on
Monday “abruptly postponed a parliamentary vote on her Brexit
deal...throwing Britain’s plan to leave the European Union into chaos after
admitting that she faced a rout.” According to Reuters, “May’s move on the
eve of the scheduled parliamentary vote opens up an array of possible
outcomes ranging from a disorderly Brexit without a deal, a last-minute
deal clinched just weeks before Britain’s March 29 exit, or another EU
referendum.” Reuters reports that as she “announc[ed] the delay, May was
laughed at by some lawmakers when she said there was broad support for her
deal reached with the EU last month.”

Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=03e-41f&t=c>
(12/10, Hutton, Donaldson, Penny) reports that May, “faced with a
humiliating defeat,” chose to “defer a vote and return to Brussels to seek
‘assurances’ from European Union leaders.” According to Bloomberg News, May
is “signal[ling] that she doesn’t expect much of substance will be
changed,” which “raises the prospect that May will be back in Parliament in
January with virtually the same deal, relying on tanking markets and
frightening no-deal preparations to convince lawmakers to back her.”

NBC Nightly News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=03f-1d3&t=c>
(12/10, story 6, 0:30, Holt) reported there were protests against May over
her “controversial” Brexit deal, but Fox News’ Special Report[image: Image
removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=040-f64&t=c>
(12/10) reports that the British premier insists that her “agreement with
the European Union is still the best deal negotiable.” The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=041-f0c&t=c>
(12/10, Adam) reports May on Monday “was clear she would not tear up the
negotiated 600-page withdrawal agreement – she said again it was the best
available deal – but will ‘do all that I can to secure the reassurances
this House requires to get this deal over the line and deliver for the
British people.’” Meanwhile, “nearly 100 members of her own Conservative
Party had signaled they would vote against her half-in, half-out version of
Brexit.” According to the Post, “the pound sterling plummeted and the stock
markets in the United States and Europe sank on news of Brexit chaos.” The CBS
Evening News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=042-ab2&t=c>
(12/10, story 6, 0:20, Glor) similarly reported that concerns over Brexit
led to “big swings” on Wall Street on Monday.

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=043-db0&t=c>
(12/10, Faulconbridge, Piper) reports EU officials “reacted coolly,” but
they are refusing to renegotiate the deal. European Council President
Donald Tusk said that Brexit “would be discussed at the council meeting on
Thursday, including how to help the British government ratify the exit
process, but that the Withdrawal Agreement was not up for renegotiation,”
Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=044-cde&t=c>
(12/10) reports. Said Tusk, “We will not renegotiate the deal, including
the backstop, but we are ready to discuss how to facilitate UK
ratification. As time is running out, we will also discuss our preparedness
for a no-deal scenario.”

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=045-0d8&t=c>
(12/10, Lawless, Kirka) says with EU officials “adamant the withdrawal deal
is not up for renegotiation, May’s move threw Britain’s Brexit plans into
disarray, battered the pound and intensified the country’s political
crisis.” Two-and-a-half years after the country voted in favor of
withdrawing from the bloc, “and with departure just over three months away
on March 29, the country does not know on what terms it will leave – and
whether May will still be Britain’s leader when it does.” The AP says in
the wake of May’s decision, lawmakers “from the opposition – and from May’s
Conservative Party – were incredulous.”

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=046-5d6&t=c>
(12/10) reports that opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn
“challenged...May’s decision to delay a vote on Brexit in the House of
Commons, arguing that her government is in ‘complete disarray.’” According
to the AP, “Labour lawmakers shouted ‘Resign! Resign!’ as May wrapped up
her remarks Monday, adding further insult to the humiliation of failing to
deliver on her signature piece of legislation.”

The Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=047-844&t=c>
(12/10, Colchester) says Britain’s fractured political landscape has
complicated efforts to reach a deal palatable to all lawmakers; without an
agreement, the default option is no deal. Analysts and business leaders
have warned that a no-deal Brexit would raise the possibility of tariffs,
long delays for critical items like food and medicines, and widespread
worker shortages.

A New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=048-f50&t=c>
(12/10) editorial says that “as the March deadline looms for Britain’s exit
from the European Union, the question is whether the search for a
compromise has been a mission impossible all along.” The Times explains
that the EU is “showing little interest in reopening negotiations,” May’s
“options are few and fraught,” and the “chasm between the Leavers and the
Remainers has become only broader.” The Times says “it remains unclear
what’s next,” but “however it plays out, the British government” should
avoid at all costs “an exit with no deal,” which “would be a disaster.”

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=049-fb8&t=c>
(12/10) editorializes that May’s opponents “said it was unlikely she could
obtain concessions that would satisfy dissenters in her own governing
coalition,” but “no other formula for ending the country’s self-destructive
battle over Brexit seemed able, for now, of commanding a parliamentary
majority. The likely result is weeks more of uncertainty and bitter
debate.” The Post argues that “there is no escaping the underlying reality
that a full separation from Europe probably cannot happen without either
redividing the two Irelands or drawing a line between Northern Ireland and
the rest of Britain,” but instead of accepting “these facts, Ms. May’s
opponents are opportunistically trying to employ them against her.”

The Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=04a-508&t=c>
says in an editorial that the political chaos surrounding Brexit
underscores that neither Britain nor the EU was intellectually or
politically prepared for such a departure. The Journal adds that a failure
of leadership has made the process far more challenging and damaging than
it needed to be.

*Top EU Court Says Britain Can Legally Cancel Brexit. *The New York
Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=04b-868&t=c>
(12/10, Castle) reports that the European Court of Justice on Monday ruled
that Britain “can legally cancel its decision to leave the European Union
and remain under its current terms,” thereby “throwing a lifeline to those
who still hope to reverse the withdrawal.” According to the Times, “The
decision, from the European Court of Justice, confirmed a recommendation
last week by one of the court’s senior legal advisers.” The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=04c-00b&t=c>
(12/10, Birnbaum) also covers the ruling from the European Union’s highest
court.

*Farage: May Was Outnegotiated By Her EU Counterparts. *The New
York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=04d-520&t=c>
(12/10, Castle) reports, “Although Brexit has produced an explosion in
British politics,” Nigel Farage, “who lit the fuse, is sitting out the
current mess, remaining on the sidelines with his main co-conspirators,
like the businessman Arron Banks.” By adopting “this detached position, Mr.
Farage says he has developed a surprising degree of admiration for Michel
Barnier, the European Union’s chief negotiator on the matter.” According to
the Times, Farage “thinks Mr. Barnier outnegotiated the British government,
and says so using the kind of analogy that made him known for an ability to
connect with a broad range of voters. ‘In a football game, you support
England – obviously,’ Mr. Farage said, chuckling slightly, ‘but you have to
sometimes recognize that Germany are better.’”

*NYTimes Profiles Mace Seized During British Parliament Session. *The
New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=04e-37d&t=c>
(12/10, Yuhas) reports that British lawmaker Lloyd Russell-Moyle attempted
to leave “Britain’s House of Commons on Monday night” with the “ceremonial
mace,” but “John Bercow, the speaker of the House,” ordered him to return
it, and “a white-haired woman emerged to grab the scepter.” Russell-Moyle
“gave it up without a fight.” The Times describes the “abortive heist” as a
reflection of “the current chaos in Britain’s government, where confusion –
about policy, authority and a mace – has in recent days reigned” amid the
Brexit chaos. The Times compares the mace – a “five-foot, silver-gilt
symbol, mostly” – to Canada’s “101-year-old mace that is a near replica of
the one in the British House of Commons,” and Jamaica’s “staff that was
delivered to it in 1786, more 150 years before it gained independence.” The
Times adds that the US “has its own mace for the House of Representatives,
made in 1841 and topped with a silver globe and eagle.”
France’s Macron Offers Concessions In Bid To Quell Violent Protests.

ABC World News Tonight[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=04f-ce6&t=c>
(12/10, story 9, 1:35, Muir) reported that after “a violent weekend of
protests,” French President Emmanuel Macron delivered a national address on
Monday, “making concessions and new promises to the French people, and
apologizing if it seemed he didn’t care.”

The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=050-d28&t=c>
(12/10, Charlton, Corbet) reports Macron “responded to several of the
protesters’ demands, promising measures that included” a government-funded
minimum wage increase and an abolition of overtime pay taxes. He also
“declared an ‘economic and social state of emergency,’ ordering the
government and parliament to take immediate steps to change tax rules and
other policies that hit the wallets of working class French people.” He did
not, however, restore “a special tax on households with assets above 1.3
million euros ($1.5 million) that he cut last year,” as protesters had
demanded. Overall, the AP says, “Macron unveiled no radical changes, and
clung to his vision for transforming France.” The AP adds that Macon spoke
“with a soft voice and gentle tone” as he “pleaded” for “a return to calm
after almost four weeks of protests,” but he “showed no signs of giving
in.”

Still, Politico Europe
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=051-f01&t=c>
(12/10) says, Macron “apologized for not having ‘reacted quickly enough’ to
the protests and said that ‘sometimes I may have given you the impression
that I had other priorities.’” Fox News’ Special Report[image: Image
removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=052-1c1&t=c>
(12/10) broadcast Macron stating, “Maybe in the beginning I gave you the
impression that I didn’t care, but that’s not true.”

The CBS Evening News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=053-0dc&t=c>
(12/10, story 7, 1:50, Glor) said Macron attempted “to diffuse the anger
that has spread from the countryside right into the heart of Paris,” but it
is unclear “whether the French President has said and done enough to avoid
a repeat of the violent demonstrations still schedule to take place right
here next weekend.” NBC Nightly News[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=054-885&t=c>
(12/10, story 5, 0:50, Holt) said despite Macron’s concessions, the
protesters have “dismissed” Macron, “saying it’s too little, too late, and
they will be back next weekend.” Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=055-be3&t=c>
(12/9, De Clercq, Massa) similarly says that the protesters “were
unimpressed with the government’s overtures, continuing their blockade of
traffic roundabouts nationwide and vowing to fight on.” Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=056-17c&t=c>
(12/10, Rose, Irish) also reports that Macron’s political opponents, “who
have largely failed so far to tap into the discontent from the leaderless
‘yellow vest,’ criticized” his delayed “response as insufficient.”

The New York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=057-5b9&t=c>
(12/10, Rubin) says that “Macron’s words and planned actions framed an
attempt by a politician regarded as aloof and imperious to connect with
ordinary citizens in Europe’s third-largest economy.” Political analysts
believe “that appeasing the anger toward Mr. Macron would require
significantly more than what he promised on Monday.” Beyond France, the
Times says, “Macron’s problems also mean problems for the European Union,
already roiled by populist political forces and Britain’s increasingly
chaotic and uncertain plans to leave.” For at least a year, the French
leader “has positioned himself as the natural heir to Chancellor Angela
Merkel of Germany as the bloc’s dominant political figure,” but now “Macron
is focused on his own political survival, and Ms. Merkel’s political
twilight has suddenly arrived.”

Bloomberg News
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=058-d82&t=c>
(12/10, Viscusi, Fouquet) says the additional costs related to the
concessions also “may put European officials in an awkward spot as the try
to force Italy to deliver a deficit of less than 2 percent.” Macron did not
“say how much the measures would cost in total,” but even “before the
government retreated on a fuel-tax hike planned for next year and the
unrest dented growth,” France’s “budget deficit was already projected to
reach 2.8 percent next year, close to the 3 percent limit imposed on
countries in the euro zone.” Bloomberg News adds that the unrest has
already left Macron’s “plan to remake France as a more flexible,
competitive and high-tech economy fit for the 21st century” at risk.
US Official: Russian Gas Pipeline To Boost Moscow’s Grip On Ukraine, Europe.

Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=059-722&t=c>
(12/10, Gardner) reports Russia is “seeking to boost its power in Europe
and grip over Ukraine with the proposed Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline,
the top US energy diplomat said on Monday, in a step-up of Washington’s
rhetoric against the pipeline.” Assistant Secretary of State for Energy
Resources Energy Francis Fannon told reporters, “Through Nord Stream 2,
Russia seeks to increase its leverage of the West while severing Ukraine
from Europe.” He also questioned “whether we can trust [Russian President
Vladimir] Putin,” adding, “I don’t think the record should indicate anyone
should.”

*WPost Analysis: Russian “Propaganda Machine” Seeks To Distort
Facts Among Public. *In a 4,000-word article, the Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=05a-dba&t=c>
(12/10, Troianovski) reports that after the attempted assassination of
former Russian spy Sergei Skripal in England “was botched, the mission
quickly shifted. Within hours...a very different kind of intelligence
operation was underway...the construction of an elaborate fog machine to
make the initial crime disappear.” Almost immediately, “dozens of false
narratives and conspiracy theories began popping up,” put out by
“Russian-controlled media and Twitter accounts and even by senior Russian
officials.” While the attempted assassination “outraged Western governments
and led to the expulsion of some 150 Russian diplomats,” analysts now “see
a potential for greater harm in the kind of heavily coordinated propaganda
barrage Russia launched after the assassination attempt failed.”
Intelligence agencies have tracked “at least a half-dozen such distortion
campaigns since 2014, each aimed, officials say, at undermining Western and
international investigative bodies and making it harder for ordinary
citizens to separate fact from falsehood.”
Domestic Policy
Meadows, Bossie Lead Media Speculation About Kelly Successor.

Media speculation on who President Trump will tap to be his third chief of
staff focuses on about a half-dozen names, most prominently Rep. Mark
Meadows (R-NC) and 2016 deputy campaign manager David Bossie. On ABC World
News Tonight[image: Image removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=05b-27b&t=c>
(12/10, story 5, 0:50, Muir), Jonathan Karl reported, “The President is
searching for a new chief of staff after ousting John Kelly. ... Mike
Pence’s chief of staff, Nick Ayers, was offered the job, but over the
weekend, he announced he would be instead moving his family back to
Georgia.” Jim Acosta said on CNN’s Situation Room[image: Image removed by
sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=05c-b82&t=c>
(12/10), “A source close to the White House and the President says he is,
quote...’super p---ed’” that Ayers “suddenly pulled himself out of the
running.” Major Garrett reported on the CBS Evening News[image: Image
removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=05d-c07&t=c>
(12/10, story 4, 1:50, Glor) that Ayers’ taking himself out of the running
“shocked many Trump associates. ... Top contenders now include” Meadows,
Bossie, ex-New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, OMB Director Mulvaney, and
Acting Attorney General Whitaker. However, the Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=05e-43b&t=c>
(12/10, Ballhaus, Nicholas) reports Mulvaney said Monday that he is not
interested.

Hallie Jackson said on NBC Nightly News[image: Image removed by
sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=05f-e85&t=c>
(12/10, story 4, 2:00, Holt) that the job is “typically among the most
coveted in Washington, but this time contenders aren’t exactly knocking
down the door.” The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=060-e4d&t=c>
(12/10, Miller, Colvin, Lucey) reports that in addition to Ayers, “several
other potential successors” including USTR Lighthizer and Treasury
Secretary Mnuchin “signaled they weren’t interested in the job.” The New
York Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=061-f0e&t=c>
(12/10, Rogers, Haberman, Karni) reports, “Trump has often bragged about
having his pick of only the best people to serve in his administration.
Being publicly rejected by his first choice for chief of staff – and
embarking on a very public search for someone else – has made Mr. Trump’s
claim harder to back up.”

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=062-255&t=c>
(12/10, Rucker, Dawsey, Costa) reports Trump “had no Plan B” to fill what
“has proved to be an especially thankless job” under “an impulsive
president.” Kelly and predecessor Reince Priebus “were left with their
reputations diminished after failing to constrain the president, who often
prefers to function as his own chief of staff.” The Wall Street Journal
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=063-05d&t=c>
(12/10) says in an editorial that Kelly deserves the nation’s thanks for
his efforts to rein in the President and calm a chaotic West Wing.

USA Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=064-cd9&t=c>
(12/10, Jackson, Dudar) reports Meadows, “chairman of the conservative
House Freedom Caucus, expressed interest in the job, saying that ‘serving
as Chief of Staff would be an incredible honor.’” Politico
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=065-f13&t=c>
(12/10, Bade, Cheney, Johnson) says if Trump taps Meadows, “he’d be
securing an astute political operative who’s made it his mission to defend
Trump from embarrassing headlines.” Meadows “and his best friend” Rep. Jim
Jordan (R-OH), “a Fox News TV star and hero on the right, have almost
single-handedly pushed Republican chairmen and GOP leaders to start
counter-investigations of the FBI’s handling of the Russia investigation.”

Meadows said on Fox News’ The Story[image: Image removed by sender.
Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=066-02a&t=c>
(12/10), “You don’t answer a question before it’s asked. But, I can say
this: Because it is an honor, I’m favorably inclined to at least have a
discussion with the President.” The Washington Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=067-1a3&t=c>
(12/10, Boyer) reports Meadows is “the first person to express interest
publicly” in the job.

The Hill’s Scott Wong tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=068-6f2&t=c>,
“[Meadows] has been asking friends in Congress to advocate for him to be
Trump’s Chief of Staff, GOP sources say. He’s almost openly campaigning for
the job.” CNBC’s Christina Wilkie tweeted
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=069-720&t=c>,
“Leading a hardcore arm of the House majority grants a lot of power. But
leading that faction in the minority strips it all away, and more. As the
symbol of a failed rebellion, Meadows can expect to be punished. And not
just by Dems, by GOP leaders too. No wonder he wants out.”

The Washington Examiner
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=06a-40f&t=c>
(12/10, Donachie) reports Bossie is also “on the short list. ... The former
Trump campaign aide and veteran antagonist of the Clintons has had
conversations with the White House about the role but has not been formally
offered the position.” Jake Tapper said on CNN’s The Lead[image: Image
removed by sender. Video]
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=06b-acf&t=c>
(12/10), “A source close to the White House” said Christie “is now
considered a strong option” as well.

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=06c-512&t=c>
(12/10) editorializes, “President Trump told the nation Sunday it was all
‘Fake News’” that he had offered Ayers the job. “Perhaps unhappy with
stories revealing the continuing disorder in his administration, the
president attacked the messenger. Unfair? Made up? Fake news? Go back
almost exactly one year. Similar stories were published about Mr. Trump’s
feelings toward then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. ... The only thing
fake in all this has been Mr. Trump’s insistence that reporters got it all
wrong – the same claim he is making now about the stories on his
chief-of-staff vacancy, the same claim he makes about practically any
article he does not like.”

Dana Milbank writes in his Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=06d-61c&t=c>
(12/10) column that Trump “is parting with his second chief of staff in as
many years and can’t seem to find a record-setting third. A 36-year-old
staffer, Nick Ayers, turned down the job, and other likely candidates have
said they aren’t interested in the post, which comes with fringe benefits
of public humiliation and legal liability.” Reuters
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=06e-38e&t=c>
(12/10, Mason), the Los Angeles Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=06f-f86&t=c>
(12/10, Bierman), and The Hill
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=070-f47&t=c>
(12/10, Fabian, Wong) also report on the President’s search.
Pelosi, Schumer To Offer Trump $1.3B For Border Fence As Shutdown Looms.

The Washington Post
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=071-279&t=c>
(12/10, Werner) reports Democratic leaders “plan to offer President Trump
$1.3 billion in funding for a border fence when they meet Tuesday at the
White House, a bid that falls far short of the $5 billion Trump is
demanding to fund a border wall.” Lawmakers and the White House “have until
Dec. 21 reach a budget deal if they are to avert a partial government
shutdown, but talks are deadlocked over funding for the wall.” Senate
Minority Leader Schumer “previously suggested Trump accept $1.6 billion in
border funding, the funding level included in a Senate bill with bipartisan
support. But that $1.6 billion would struggle to pass the House, where
Democrats won’t support it because they say it’s too much and Republicans
because it’s not enough.” The Post notes that the $1.3 billion “would
extend current funding levels.”

The Los Angeles Times
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=072-7b8&t=c>
(12/10, Haberkorn) says the spending bill “represents Trump’s last chance
to get taxpayer funding for the border wall, which he campaigned on” and
“promised Mexico would pay for.” Schumer and House Minority Leader Pelosi
“say there is no way their members will support funding for the wall,
especially after flipping 40 seats in the House in last month’s midterm
election.”

*Pentagon To Pull 2,200 Troops From Border. *The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=073-0c2&t=c>
(12/10, Baldor) reports the Pentagon this week will “begin withdrawing many
of the active duty troops sent to the border with Mexico” by President
Trump, US officials said Monday. Roughly “2,200 of the active duty troops
will be pulled out before the holidays, the officials said,” leaving “about
3,000 active duty troops in Texas, Arizona and California.” There also will
still be “about 2,300 members of the National Guard who were sent to the
border region as part of a separate deployment that started in April.” USA
Today
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=074-4bf&t=c>
(12/10, Brook) reports Defense Secretary Mattis last week “signed orders
extending deployments for some troops through January.” However, he told
reporters that troop levels “would depend on requests from the Department
of Homeland Security,” and “much of that work has been completed.”

*Dozens Of Quakers Arrested At Border Protest. *The AP
<http://mailview.bulletinintelligence.com/mailview.aspx?m=2018121101biden&r=email-ba6c&l=075-343&t=c>
(12/10) reports the US Border Patrol made “32 arrests at a demonstration
organized by a Quaker group at the border separating San Diego from
Tijuana, Mexico.